Chapter IX: FORM IV: JUNIOR GRADE (Continued)

LAUNDRY WORK

This work is but a continuation of the lessons on cleaning. It is the process of removing foreign matter from cotton, linen, woollen, or silk fabrics by the use of water and additional cleansing agents. It also includes the finishing of these materials by the use of blueing, starch, and heated irons, to restore as far as possible their original appearance.

The principles of laundry work have been taught in the washing of dish cloths and towels, and now these principles have only to be extended to white cotton and linen clothes of any kind.

The pupils may be asked to bring soiled articles of white linen or cotton from home for use at school in exemplifying the necessary processes. In schools which lack an equipment, these processes may be discussed in class and then practised at home. The teacher should choose from the following outline what is most suitable to the class:

OUTLINE OF LESSONS ON THE WASHING OF WHITE COTTON AND LINEN CLOTHES

LESSON I

MATERIALS

1. Water:

(1) Use:
(_a_) To soften and dissolve certain foreign
substances in the clothes.
(_b_) To carry away all the foreign matter that
has been dissolved or rubbed out of the
clothes.

(_2_) Kinds:
(_a_) _Hard water_
(_b_) _Soft water_

For laundry purposes, the water should be soft.
The quality known as hardness, which some water
has, is due to the lime which it has dissolved
in making its way through the earth.

Water is said to be temporarily or permanently
hard according to the kind of lime it has in
solution. Temporarily hard water may be
softened by boiling; the lime will be
deposited, as may be seen in the "furring" of
tea-kettles. Boiling has no effect in softening
permanently hard water, so a substance known as
an _alkali_ is used for this purpose.

(3) Methods of softening water by alkalies.--For
each gallon of water use one of the following:
(_a_) One tablespoonful of borax or ammonia
dissolved in one cup of water.
(_b_) Two tablespoonfuls of a solution made by
dissolving one pound of washing soda in one
quart of boiling water.
(_c_) One fourth tablespoonful of lye dissolved
in one cup of water.

2. Alkalies (borax, ammonia, washing soda, lye):

(1) Use:
(_a_) To soften hard water
(_b_) To assist in dissolving greasy
substances.

(2) Kinds:
(_a_) _Borax._--This alkali is one of the
mildest, and for this reason is less harmful to
the clothing. It is useful when an alkali is
required to soften water for coloured clothes
or woollens. It also has a tendency to keep
white clothes a good colour.
(_b_) _Ammonia._--This also is a mild alkali,
but is apt to "yellow" white materials. As it
is very volatile, it should not be used unless
the washing can be done quickly.
(_c_) _Washing soda._--This is a cheap
substance and stronger than borax or ammonia.
It should be made into a solution before it is
used, for fear of too great strength.

(_d_) _Lye, or caustic soda._--This alkali is
very strong and should be employed with great
care. It must not be used except in weak
solutions, otherwise it would entirely dissolve
fabrics. It is not advisable for home laundry
work.

3. Soap:

(1) Use.--To act on greasy matter.

Soap-suds penetrate fabrics more completely
than water alone, and when the soap comes in
contact with fatty material, it _emulsifies_
it, that is, very finely divides it into minute
particles, so that it can be easily removed. If
a soap is used that contains free alkali, this
substance unites with the greasy impurities to
form new soap which has cleansing value.

(2) Kinds.--(_a_) Neutral, (_b_) medium, (_c_)
strong.

All soap is a compound of an alkali and fat,
and according as one or the other of these
substances predominates, the kind of soap is
determined.

When just enough alkali is used to completely
_saponify_ the amount of fat, the product is
called a neutral, or mild, soap. When an excess
of alkali is present, the soap is termed medium
or strong, according to the amount of free
alkali it contains.

A mild soap should be used when free alkali
would be injurious, as in washing woollens or
fabrics that have delicate colours.

4. Soap substitutes, or adjuncts:

(1) Use.--To act alone or with soap in exerting
a solvent action on greasy impurities, so that
the cleansing process may be facilitated.

(2) Kinds:
(_a_) _Alkalies._--These must be used in excess
of the amount needed for softening the water.
(_b_) _Harmless solvents, such as turpentine,
paraffin, coal-oil, gasolene._--The clothing
must be well rinsed to get rid of any odour.
(_c_) _Washing powders._--These are prepared
mixtures of soap and some other solvent of
greasy matter.

5. Blueing:

(1) Use.--To make clothes which have a yellow
tinge appear whiter in colour.

(2) Kinds.--There are several kinds on the
market, but the names of these will be of no
value to the class.

NOTE.--Sufficient blueing should be used to
make the blueing water a pale sky-blue colour
when a little of it is lifted in the hand.

6. Starch:

(1) Use:
(_a_) To stiffen fabrics and thus improve their
appearance.
(_b_) To give fabrics a glazed surface, so that
they will shed dust and other impurities.

(2) Kinds.--(_a_) Cold starch, (_b_) boiled starch.

Raw starch does not give as durable a finish as
cooked starch, but it does give greater
stiffness. A fabric will take up more starch in
the raw form, and the heat of the iron cooks
the starch, thus producing the stiffness. The
"body", or stiffness, produced by cooked starch
is usually preferable, though on account of its
preparation, it is not so convenient to use.

(3) Recipes for starch--
(_a_) Cold Starch

2 tbsp. laundry starch
1/2 tsp. borax
2 cups cold water.

Dissolve the borax in a little boiling water. Add the cold water gradually to the starch and mix thoroughly. Add the dissolved borax and stir well before using.

(_b_) Boiled Starch

2 tbsp. starch
4 tbsp. cold water
1/2 tsp. lard, butter, or paraffin
1 qt. boiling water.

Mix the starch with the cold water until free from lumps. Add the lard, then gradually stir in the boiling water, and keep stirring until thickened. Cook fifteen minutes and use hot.

NOTE.--Borax in starch gives greater gloss and
increases the stiffness. It also gives more
lasting stiffness. Lard, butter, or wax is used
to give a smoother finish and to prevent the
starch from sticking to the iron.

LESSON II

PREPARATION FOR WASHING WHITE LINEN OR COTTON CLOTHES

1. Sort the clothes: (1) Table linen and clean towels
(2) Bed and body linen
(3) Handkerchiefs
(4) Soiled towels and cloths.
2. Mend the clothes.
3. Remove stains.
4. Look after necessary materials.

PROCESS OF WASHING WHITE LINEN OR COTTON CLOTHES

_Steps_ _Method_

1. Soaking:

Wet the clothes; rub the soiled parts with soap
and roll each article separately; pack in a
tub, placing the clothing most soiled at the
bottom; cover with warm soapy water and soak
from one hour to over night.

The soaking softens and loosens the fibres of
fabrics, so that the foreign matter in them can
be more easily separated. It also dissolves the
soluble impurities in the fabrics.

2. Rubbing:

Wring the clothes out of the soaking water, and
place them in a tub of clean warm water or
soap-suds; rub the soiled parts first on one
side and then on the other, using the knuckles,
a washboard, or a washing-machine. When each
piece is clean, wring it tightly.

The rubbing scrapes or rubs out the foreign
matter which has been loosened by the soaking.

3. Rinsing:

Shake out each piece and put it into a tub of
clear water; rub, and move about in the water
to get rid of any soiled water that the clothes
may contain; wring tightly.

4. Boiling:

Shake out each piece and place it in a boiler
of cold water with or without soap; bring to
boiling heat, and boil briskly for twenty
minutes.

The boiling kills any germs and assists in
whitening the clothes.

5. Rinsing:

Lift the clothes from the boiling water by
means of a clothes stick and place them in a
tub of clear, cold water; proceed as in the
first rinsing.

6. Blueing:

Open out each piece and place one or two at a
time in a tub of blueing water for just a
moment; wring tightly, and shake out each
piece.

The blueing tends to counteract any yellow
tinge in the clothes, making them appear
whiter.

7. Starching:

Dip one piece at a time into the starch mixture
until well saturated; then wring.

Only certain articles or parts of articles will
require this part of the process, to give them
body or stiffness and, it may be, glossiness.

8. Hanging:

Shake out each piece thoroughly; fasten to a
clothes-line or hang on a rack to allow the
moisture to evaporate. This should be
out-of-doors in the sunlight if possible.

REMOVAL OF STAINS

Foreign matter which is difficult or impossible to remove by the ordinary washing process is called a _stain_. Such matter is not dissolved by the usual cleansing agents used in laundry work, such as water and soap, but requires some special solvent to act on it. The choice of the agent to be used will depend on the nature of the foreign matter to be removed. In some cases it is difficult to find an agent which will not act also on the colour of the fabric; in other cases to find one which does not injure the fibre of the goods.

The pupils should be asked to give instances from their own experience where special solvents were used to remove stains, and be required to make a list of these. If necessary, the teacher should supplement this list with the names of other agents and the methods of using them.

OUTLINE OF LESSONS ON THE WASHING OF WOOLLENS

The washing of woollen materials is part of the Course for the work of the Senior Grade of Form IV, but, for the sake of convenience, the laundry lessons of both Grades of Form IV are outlined in one section of this Manual.

Before allowing the class any practice in this branch of laundry work, it will be necessary for the teacher to make certain principles very clear:

1. That wool is an animal product. As such it tends to be shrunken and hardened by (1) heat, (2) alkalies.

2. That the surface of each wool fibre woven into woollen materials is seen under the microscope to be covered with notches, or scales. If these notches in any way become entangled, the material is thereby drawn up, or "shrunken".

3. That these notches may be entangled by:

(1) Wetting the woollen material and then
rubbing or twisting it. When the fibres are
wet, they expand somewhat and the projecting
scales, or notches, are loosened. If the
material is rubbed at this time, the notched
edges interlock.

(2) The use of strong soaps or alkalies. These
act chemically on the fibres and soften and
expand them, causing the notched edges to
become so prominent that they catch in one
another.

NOTE.--The structure of woollen fibres may be
sketched on the black-board and compared with
those of cotton and linen.

To impress the foregoing principles, a few experiments will be found most useful.

EXPERIMENTS WITH CLOTH MADE OF WOOL FIBRE

1. Boil a piece of new woollen cloth for five minutes. Dry, and compare with an original piece.

2. Saturate a piece of new woollen cloth with a strong solution of washing soda. Dry, and compare with an original piece.

3. Wash a piece of new woollen cloth in each of the following ways:

(1) By rubbing soap directly on the cloth and
then sousing the goods in the water.

(2) By using a soap solution instead of the
soap, as in (1).

(3) By rubbing on a wash-board.

In each case dry the cloth and compare with an original piece.

After the results of the experiments have been discussed, the pupils may formulate a series of "points" to be observed in the washing of woollen fabrics.

POINTS IN WASHING WOOLLENS

1. Use lukewarm, soft water.

2. Do not use strong soaps or alkalies.

3. Do not rub soap directly on the woollen material, but use soap solutions.

4. Do not rub or twist woollen cloth when it is wet.

5. Do not boil to sterilize.

6. Do not dry in extreme heat.

STEPS IN WASHING WOOLLEN MATERIALS

1. Shake or brush the clothing to free it from dust.

2. Put it into lukewarm, soapy water to soak for a few minutes.

3. Wash on both sides by squeezing and sousing in the water.

4. Rinse in clear, lukewarm water; use several waters, if necessary, to remove the soap.

5. Pass through a loosely set wringer or squeeze the water out by hand.

6. Shake, in order to raise the woolly fibres.

7. Dry in a moderate temperature, in a wind, if possible.